Within Pandora's Box: Wind-Up God
by IkasamaLegend
Summary: 'I wonder if there's something out there that really can grant wishes' With that thought reality began to shift, and for the briefest moment, the impossible became its opposite. With the power of his desire, an object to distort time was created; Pandora's Box. It was through that box that my existence was created; gather around, for I am the Wind-Up God of your desires.
1. The First Wish

**Within Pandora's Box;  
Wind-Up God**

**"This is all your damn fault, this catastrophe!"**

**August 16th, 2013; 11:42 PM**

_Let me begin by introducing myself. Hello, my 'name' is (currently) Ikasama. This is my first story on this account. Many of you may recognize my main account if I told you its name- which is why I won't. ^^ oh well, you'll probably be able to guess it eventually anyway._

_Alright, how about we start by saying that I'm a HUGE kemu fan. I freaking love that genius of a guy._

_I've wanted to write a fanfiction (or multiple fanfictions) based on his work for a long time now, specifically for the song Life-Reset Button, my personal favorite song of his- hell, my favorite song out of everything! My problem, though, was that I wanted to make everything as pin-pointedly accurate as possible, and as you probably all know, that is almost impossible. His lyrics are too vague and can be perceived in many different ways. Does the Life-Reset Button represent suicide? Drug abuse? Or is it really just a button that restarts life, without any metaphoric value? And Kaiba-sensei, who is he/she? Is Kaiba a family member, a teacher, or could he/she be part of Gumi herself? After all, Kaiba is apparently a nickname for some part of your brain... It's just impossible to be completely correct when there are so many variables within the equation!_

_And so, in the end, I've decided to start from the very 'beginning' of the story- or at least, that's how I like to see it._

_In the Evil Chronicles, the sins were created when Eve kidnapped those children. As her body burned in that fire, the sins were distributed across time and space, and so the story began.  
Here, within Pandora's Box, the story will be created by a person who had a wish. As his wish begins to take form, it shall divide itself into pieces similar to the sins, yet different. The ability to predict tomorrow, the condition of unfortunate transparency, the strong will to disappear, an attempt to try and reset; they all stem from the wish of a single boy._

**[The boy wished to be a god.]**

* * *

**I  
The First Wish**

* * *

What if someday you were to die young? What if, in just a single instance, your life was completely over, without a single warning or an once of care? What would it be like, I wonder, to die without having accomplished anything at all?

The boy didn't want to die. The boy wanted to dream, to wish, to fulfill. It was because of this wish of his that death never took him; he thought to himself, 'I want to live', and so death was never allowed near him. No one could touch him. He was a boy of the gods, a boy from the nonexistent come within the living.

And yet he was just another human being. His blood was the same as theirs, his skin the same color, his background, nothing unusual. He'd been born into this world as he would someday die out of it. He was completely normal, yet beyond special at the same time.

The boy, as a child, wished for a friend to replace his loneliness. And so, another him met a young girl, while the original remained solitary. As he grew, he felt overwhelmed and wished to be invisible, to hide from the world. As a result, another him grew transparent, while the original began to cower. When it became too much, he wished for a way to be reborn. And so, another him found the ability to reset. Nearing the end of his high-school life, he wished to disappear. Another him was wiped from existence. The original continued to exist.

Without even knowing, he controlled his other existences with as simple a thing as a wish, interfering and disrupting their lives. He was a cursed child, though nobody knew it. Nobody in the world, in the land of the living, in the land of the dead, paid this child any special attention, for he was just another human being. Nobody paid attention to his multiple existences, despite it being an abnormality. He was just... there.

The boy suffered on his own without knowing. Someday, he would die without knowing. That is, unless he wished to learn. Fate would bend rules for him; it hadn't a choice.

The boy went to school and came back, as he always did. He studied on his desk in his room, went down for dinner, and ate yakisoba. His grandmother asked him to bring a friend over sometime. He simply nodded, knowing all too well he'd never be able to; he hadn't any friends. He bid his mother and father goodnight and kissed his grandmother's cheek, changed into his pajamas, and went to bed. Such a typical day for such a typical child. And yet, that was the day itself that changed my life- or rather, that _gave _me life.

You see, the boy hadn't fallen asleep. He'd lain in his bed, staring out his open window, and watched the bright stars in the sky.

"Some people like to wish on stars," he'd mumbled, as if such a thing were beyond stupid. "Stars don't grant wishes. Nothing can."

And then he thought to himself, the idea that wrote the prologue to history: 'I wonder if there's something out there that really _**can **_grant wishes?'

With that thought reality began to shift, and for the briefest moment, the impossible became its opposite.

'... Mm, that's stupid. There isn't.'

And things returned to the way they were. Or... almost.

The power of a wish is extremely powerful, especially that of this special boy's. Even a second spent pondering can transform a life or two and create the supernatural. When the boy wondered if there was such an amazing tool that could grant even wishes, a small part of him created such an object.

This object itself changed the past, the present, the future, and rewrote history. It was taught to the boy as a lesson the next morning in his Mythology class, under the name of 'Pandora's Box'.

It is from this 'box' of wonders and illusions that I am born. I am not exaggerating in the slightest when I say I owe my existence to this boy of wonder. And yet, I am not completely grateful for it either, despite what one may assume. You see, in creating me, _us_, the boy was able to rid himself from part of his curse, a curse he'd never known he had. This pattern of misfortune divided itself into two and found its home in my non-mortal body. And so, despite us being different 'people' entirely, we are one and the same, connected, for I would be literally nothing without and him and a part of his soul is housed within me.

Because of the creation of Pandora, we were forced to forever live in a circle. Actually, now that I think about it, that is a lie. Pandora gave us one lifetime of pain and suffering. _**He**_was the one who extended his own sentence. The boy himself created his own vicious cycle.

But it isn't about him, is it?

Despite having declared a wish-granting 'machine' could never exist, he grew curious. He researched anything that sounded similar to his ideals, looked up anything that matched even a few characteristics of what he had in mind. With every minute, every second, his beliefs grew stronger. Those beliefs were what filled Pandora's Box with its contents, but it was his wish itself to find what he seeked that gave the mysterious 'box' its power.

One day, he grew frustrated with his searches.

He'd returned home only two days ago from a week-long trip to Hong Kong, visiting a shrine that was said to 'bring good luck' to its visitors. It was just another dead end, a long time myth preached by elders years ago. Yet again, he was back where he'd begun.

'Maybe it's not an object or place,' he'd thought to himself curiously. 'Maybe, what I'm really looking for... is a person.'

Within Pandora's Box, his creation took the form of a human girl: _Me_. His wish was nearly fulfilled.

"I hope I'll find it soon... Whether it be an object, a place, or a person, I really wish I could find this something that grants wishes very soon!" He was only eighteen years old, yet so brilliant already. A shame he wasn't aiming very high.

Pandora heard his wish and repaid it with inspiration. For the following two months, he thought of nothing but his impending creation. He thought of the person he'd meet, his wish-granting machine, and wondered what she'd look like.

Through his visions, my eyes opened and my irises became a teal-blue. My hair grew green and choppy, my skin became fairly pale. My body took on the appearance of a healthy female human's and I developed the looks of a teenage girl.

He even pictured my personality. 'She'll be mysterious... She won't be very open either. She'll probably be as lonely as I've been my whole life. I'll bet she'll be a pushover, though, like if someone bothered her enough, she'd give in to whatever... no matter how bad the request. I don't think she'll be a criminal, though. No, of course not! But... she'll probably act like one. She'll just be lost in this big world, not really knowing who she is and why she has her powers... but she'll know she has them. I can see her now, a bit of a tsundere, straight-faced, never wanting to show her emotions.  
'I'll know it's her the moment I see her, though. She'll just have this aura about her... I'll know she's the one I've been looking for. Maybe she'll know I've been looking for her, too.'

Finally, one day, he paused in his sketching. He glanced upwards with a sigh and closed his eyes. "I wish I could find this person... I wish I could wake up tomorrow morning and know for sure I'd meet her that day. Please... I want this more than anything in the world."

He'd become obsessed with his fantasies and overly demanding. To create something so intricate took time; I could not be properly finished by that deadline. Even for Pandora, it was impossible, though more time was put into me. My development progressed at a faster pace.

A week and a half after his wish was spoken, his creation was finished.

On his way home from school, he found a girl in the rain.

Oddly enough, she was nude, yet she didn't shiver in the cold winds. She lay completely still, like an abandoned life-sized doll.

His first thought was that this girl had been a victim of some killer-rapist. He was reaching for his cell-phone, about to dial the police's emergency number, when he felt it- that bond he'd wished for between creator and created.

Hesitantly, the boy approached. He recognized that aura surrounding her as the one he'd pictured in his fantasies. He saw her jade green hair and held his breath. It... It couldn't be! Very slowly, he reached out his trembling hand and lifted the girl's right arm. It was awkward, especially considering her nudeness, but he saw the evidence he'd been looking for.

On her side, below her armpit was a small patch of darker skin in the shape of a star. A birthmark, just like the one he'c playfully imagined.

"You're... her," he mumbled in awe. "Wow, I... I never expected...!"

Yes. This creature he'd found lying around was me, the nameless 'machine' he'd been searching for for years.

He struggled to lift me to my feet, a girl of one hundred and eleven pounds (exactly as he'd designed me to be), and awkwardly hobbled away with me by his side, walking in direction of his apartment.

'This probably looks weird, me, walking around with a naked - not to mention unconscious - girl in my arms,' he thought. 'I hope nobody finds me on my way home.' And so not a single creature appeared on our path.

Pandora smiled as it watched us. We would surely provide an amusing spectacle. "There you have it, boy. You wished for powers of a god, and now, here she is; your very own mechanical fortune cookie, your very own Wind-Up God... Enjoy."

* * *

**August 21st, 2013; 10:51 PM**

_I... really like how this came out._

_Actually, I was so into this that I finished the entire chapter in one night. Of course, it helps when you consider its length; normally my chapters (on my main account, that is) are about 8k words in length- my current record being a 17k oneshot. This seems about 2000 words only to me. Maybe even less. While I'm not used to writing such short chapters (the last time I've written a chapter this short was probably about two years ago), it feels pretty good. I mean... I'm done. That's pretty cool. I even had the patience to read it over and change/correct things. That's... really cool._

_The reason I've waited so long before writing this ending A/N is because I wasn't sure whether or not I'd really be posting it. Now, all I can think is, hell, why not? If I don't finish it, I don't finish it. If I don't get many reviews, oh well. It was only 2k anyway._

_I really hope you __do__ like it, though. I mean... I could think of so many ways to use this idea. I'm actually kind of excited about it too. ^^_

_Please review..._


	2. The Second Wish

**Wind-Up God**

**"If someone were to create an object that could defy fate, the world would be a better place- The story ends; What happens next?"**

**September 18th, 2013; 10:29 PM**

_There are other things I should be working on, but I can't help but want to write this instead. It doesn't even matter that chapter one only received one review- in fact, it's to be expected. Nobody knows who I am on this account; my name doesn't mean anything to anyone. It's kind of fun to be so unknown, though I don't doubt things would be much easier had I used my main account to post this story. Recently I thought of deleting this story and reposting it up onto that other, popular account, but I changed my mind; this is IkasamaLegend's story. And so, I shall post it under IkasamaLegend's name._

_Anyway... I got kemu's album a few weeks ago. Both of them, actually; PANDORA VOXX and PANDORA VOXX complete. ... It's awesome. My favorite CDs ever. I had no idea kemu had ever used Len's voice! I'd always thought he'd purchased the Kagamine voicebanks, used Rin for Invisible (and now Reincarnation as well) and then just ignored Len the rest of the time. Turns out, he's got a number of songs he's never uploaded to NND (or at least, I didn't find them on Youtube). He's actually really good with Len... So good, it puts me to shame. (I mean, Nem is still better with Len, but it's kemu, so I must exaggerate everything.) I dare you to search 'Tensai Shingaa, Bonsai Shingaa'. I think it may just be my favorite Len song ever, now. I'm sorry, Super Hero. XD Oh, and there's a special orchestra version of Life-Reset Button on one of the CDs as well. ... Let's just say... I felt a few dreams become reality. XD Yeah, I was on Cloud Nine. I think I might unconsciously worship this person. o_o Don't look at me like that. I'm not creepy!_

_Anyway, the first chapter was pretty messed and confusing, but I did so on purpose. In fact, I went over it just to make sure everything was confusing enough. XD I wanted it to be similar to the songs in the way that they were both vague, intriguing and - surprise - confusing enough to make you wonder what the hell just happened.  
However, this second chapter will not be as messed. You'll be able to understand what's going on- though it may remind you a bit of Chobits. I mean, it reminds __**me**__ of Chobits, so I really won't blame you. XD_

**[The boy wished to be a god.]**

* * *

**II  
The Second Wish**

* * *

Well.

... Now what?

Without really thinking things through, the boy had brought a random - not to mention nude - stranger into his small apartment. Normally, that would suggest quite a number of things, perverted adult things, yet he never considered a single one. He was morally superior than the modern-age young man, though whether that had anything to do with his abilities was unknown.  
I'd always believed it was just part of his personality. Oh, but people do change, don't they?

He stared at me, waiting for me to wake up or move or... something. Anything, really.

'What if she's dead?' he thought, and Pandora grew interested. 'Oh shit, what if I just dragged a dead girl to my house? What the hell would the police think about that?!' Oh, Pandora liked that idea. Suddenly, my 'heart' stopped beating, my 'existence' ceasing.

'... No.' He was so stubborn about such odd things. 'She's not just a girl. She can't die.' And just like that, despite Pandora's attempts, my heart began beating again, my 'blood' flowing again through my 'veins'.

He thought I was oh-so-special, just because I was the girl of his dreams- literally. He couldn't leave me alone while he waited for me to wake, not even to make himself food. His stomach grumbled loudly from time to time, announcing its hunger loudly and clearly. It was so irresponsible of him to starve for me... stupid, really.

After an hour or two he sighed and looked up to the ceiling. 'I wish she'd just wake up already,' he thought to himself in frustration.

Ah, the magic words. Pandora forced my eyes open despite my will to keep sleeping forever. Where lived forever, there was no danger, only eternity. The 'eternity' he'd eventually create for us was of a different kind. Yes, it lasted a long time, but it wasn't exactly what I'd wanted. Forever is peaceful; our cycle was hellish.

He didn't notice me at first, his eyes drooping as sleep threatened to take him, but I think he may have heard me move. His head snapped upwards and he saw me push myself up onto my knees.

For a long time, he just stared at me. I stared back.

"You... You're alive...!" He seemed so surprised yet so happy. It was as if he hadn't ever expected me to wake, as if he'd convinced himself he was only dreaming.

The fact that he was happy about my awakening was unexpected to me. He was... happy to see me? But why? What had I done?

He abandoned his chair and kneeled down in front of me. His dark eyes were opened wide, sparkling in excitement. "Is it really you?" he asked. "Are you really... her?"

Despite all the signs indicating I was obviously the one he'd been dreaming of, he still needed to ask such a question? But of course, I didn't know either back then; I was born oblivious to ulterior motives and was as clueless as he.

"E-Eh...?" Such a stupid sound, but I couldn't help it; I was lost and confused and this boy was asking me if I was 'her', as if I'd know who 'her' was.

His expression softened as he realized he was making me nervous. He'd always been quite sensitive to other people's emotions. _Maybe that's what started all our problems in the first place. _"What's your name?" he asked. But he already knew.

My newborn brain attempted to pull such a strand from my mechanical memory and succeeded. "Gumi," I said quietly, wishing he'd leave me alone. Somewhere or nowhere, Pandora celebrated its triumph in creating the artificial person. I was absolutely perfect, it seemed. I worked, I functioned; just that was enough for now. The rest would depend on the boy and his actions.

His smile grew. "It's not just Gumi, is it? That's just a nickname. Your real name is Megumi, isn't it?"

I nodded, frightened that he knew this fact. "W-Who are you...?"

"Wait... I just realized, I don't even know your last name." He paused thoughtfully. "I don't think I ever gave you one, now that I think about it... So what's your last name?"

I kept silent for a while as I myself struggled to remember my own last name. It was no use- the information hadn't been obtained. "I... I don't have a last name."

"Right! Right, that makes sense," he thought aloud. He reminded me of a five-year-old with a shiny new toy, practically bouncing in excitement and tittering from one thought to another. "That star on your side there, is it a real birthmark?"

"Y-Yes...?"

"Just like I'd planned it to be..." he said thoughtfully.

As I gazed down curiously at the mark I realized something rather disturbing. "Wh- Clothes?!" Oh yes, I was still completely nude.

His face paled as he realized what I was probably thinking. He raised his hands, palms out in a sign of surrender. "N-No, don't worry, I swear I didn't do anything! I-It's just... You were like that when I found you! I promise I didn't steal your clothes or something..."

I didn't know what to believe, but that didn't seem to matter. He rushed to his closet and pulled out an oversized shirt, passing it to me. It landed on my head, blinding my vision with green fabric. I heard footsteps travel to the other side of the room and a few seconds later, something else landed on my lap. I sat there in shock, wondering why I couldn't see anything and slightly alarmed about what he may possibly be doing on the other side of my green veil.

After about a minute, he finally realized what was wrong with me. He chuckled and suddenly the green was gone. His room was back. He dropped the shirt into my lap and smiled at me encouragingly.

"Don't be alarmed, my underwear is clean," he reassured me as I held up his underwear.

"I can get dressed at home," I said in a snappish way that completely fit the personality he'd imagined for me - which he should have been pleased about - but instead his face fell almost comically. He looked so upset all of a sudden, and for what?

"So... you're leaving?" Then suddenly his eyebrows drew closer. "You have a home?"

It was upon considering this that I realized that, no, I in fact did _not_ have a home. When I told him so, however, he seemed completely thrilled.

"Perfect! You can stay here. I promise I won't do anything creepy," he added as an afterthought.

Good; right now, he was creepy enough as he was.

He gave me his room and told me he'd use his couch tonight. Maybe tomorrow, he'd set up a futon. It was as if he thought I'd never leave, that I'd live with him forever. But, then again, I did, didn't I? It was so ironic for me to be afraid of that thought.

He took good care of me, asking me if I was hungry (I'd said no but he'd made me a cup of ramen anyway, to which I politely refused), if I wanted another blanket on my make-shift bed, if I needed to use his shower, if maybe I wanted to call someone, and I didn't have to worry about anything and that should I need something, I had only ask.

It was six-thirty. The boy asked me if I wanted to watch a movie.

I'd been programmed to know what a movie was but had never actually seen one. Still, it wasn't all too exciting. Watching a magic box show some magic pictures on its magic screen... it wasn't as magical as I would have thought it to be. The boy, on the other hand, found it entertaining beyond belief.

"I love this show," he laughed. "The art is absolutely horrible, yes, but it's just so funny that I can't stop watching it! I used to read it all the time when I was a kid. It might just be the best gag manga ever! Oh, but this is the anime. Well, they're both fantastic. You should read them, Gumi."

He always called me by my name, as if we were already close friends. (We weren't, of course. We'd only just met.) It made me uncomfortable at first, but I eventually grew to like it. Though I shouldn't be saying such things.

I didn't know what to think as I sat there on the floor. I didn't want to get too close to him so I'd let him have the entire couch to himself. Here I was in a stranger's shirt and underwear, sitting on the same stranger's carpet in the very same stranger's apartment. How... strange. It made me uncomfortable. It was the typical human's assumed reaction to such a situation. It made only sense for the imitation to feel the same way.

I watched him carefully. His expressions changed often as he stared at the magic box- the 'TV'. His face would go from being sad to worried to angry, then to determined and then hopeful. Every few minutes he'd laugh and smile and that smile would brighten up his whole face in a way that was quite strange- but a good kind of strange. A strange that I liked.

His hair was a dark color, brown, maybe. It was hard to tell in the dark. It was a little too long and hung into his face a little. It stuck up messily in certain places, but I found I liked that as well. Maybe because he wanted me to. His eyes were as dark as his hair. Or maybe they weren't. In the dark, it was hard to tell. His eyes were thin and kind of folded in a strange way that I realized was trademark for his race- a race humans called 'Asian'. Was I Asian too? I didn't know.

He noticed my staring and looked away from the TV for a moment. He offered me a smile, a big smile that showed his straight teeth and for a moment, I felt like smiling too. But I didn't. I couldn't. Maybe I just didn't know how.

He turned his attention back to the TV and the moment was lost. I looked away too, slightly embarrassed that I'd been caught, though it didn't affect me all too much.

It felt strange, being there. Not there as in within his home- there as in with the living in general. I had no idea how I'd gotten where I was. I had no idea who had created me, who my parents were, if I had any family at all. I didn't know whether or not I had a home, if someone was looking for me, if maybe there was somewhere I was supposed to be. That, I didn't like. It confused me, not being able to remember a single thing. The only thing there to comfort me was one special detail:

'I know where I am now.'

I couldn't say anything about my past or future, but at least I knew the present. Presently, I sat in a stranger's apartment, a stranger who'd never told me his name. He'd found me on the streets and brought me to his house. He'd let me borrow his clothes and his bed. And now he was offering me his company (sort of) as he watched the TV and I... sat in the same room. It wasn't much, but it was reassuring to think about now. Because at least this was comprehensive. It made sense. It was easy to think about such simple things.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a strange feeling took over my body. My shoulders and head felt heavy and my eyes began to droop. My head went dizzy and my feet began to go numb.  
Immediately I panicked and tried to reverse the process, but nothing could be done; I was slowly falling into a state unknown, falling, falling, unable to climb back up to the safe ledge, a ledge like... like... something... to hold onto...

"Hey, don't fall asleep there on the floor!" I heard him laugh. The gravity levels changed as if I wasn't on the ground anymore and I wondered if maybe I was floating, flying. Floating felt warm. There was a beating on my right side, like the beating of a... of a... of something that beats. A heart. Yes, a heart... that's what it was. His heart? Probably. He must have lifted me up somehow into his arms and the reason I felt so warm was because humans naturally radiated body heat, a special feature designed to- Oh!

There was a new feeling of sinking, but these one was different. It was soft and cozy and warm. My head was propped up by something light and some thin material was draped over me. I clutched it with my left hand and pulled it up to my chin. It was a nice feeling, though the fact that I couldn't open my eyes anymore was quite unsettling.

"You only needed to tell me if you felt tired," I heard the boy say. "I could have carried you here earlier. It really doesn't make sense, though... You've already slept half the day already, haven't you? That's what it seemed like." A sigh. "Oh well. If you feel tired, then you should sleep."

Sleep? Oh, sleep. I knew what that was. Sleep is the human reaction to fatigue and the body's natural way to quickly regenerate nutrients. While similar to hibernation, it is not used for means of survival; should the body run without sleep, the organs would exhaust themselves and the human body itself would collapse. Sleep permits organs to rest, allowing them a chance to slowly recreate blood cells, to cleanse the system in peace, et cetera, et cetera...

"Good night, Gumi..."

Even resting, to lay unmoving without technically falling into sleep, is enough to reduce fatigue levels, though it is not nearly as efficace as the act of sleep itself. The state of being unable to sleep is called insomnia. Insomnia is a mental illness that... prevents... from sleep... Sleeping is... Sometimes in sleep, humans experience... dreams... dreams are illusions that... swaying... swaying like an elephant... a big, gray-

My train of thought was lost as sleep overtook me.

* * *

**October 13th, 2013; 12:29 AM**

_You know, it's actually a lot of fun to write for a Gumi who doesn't identify herself as human. I hope at least one other person noticed that before I mentioned it... anybody? ^^"_

_It's actually not something I did on purpose. When I write, I become the character and their thoughts become mine. It's kind of hard to explain without sounding cliché... But this Gumi has a habit of calling people 'human' as if she herself is not one of these. Technically, she isn't __completely__ human, but... She also seems quite found of the word 'strange'. :3  
It's a lot of fun to write as her. She's unable to understand certain human behaviors, such as the magic in watching TV, and I find that interesting. I especially like it when she's confused because she doesn't really make any expression. She kind of just sits there and waits for someone to explain things to her. Like when the shirt was on her head. XD_

_While she's been 'programmed' to know words and definitions and all that, she's never actually experienced anything before, so it'll be fun to watch her experience different things like the feeling of clean bed sheets, the taste of warm oatmeal, the sweaty feeling one gets when it's hot out... even the feeling of having to go to the washroom. XD_

_Reviews would be fantastic, if you could be ever so kind. ^^_


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